A reception for the former Republican governor will be held from 2:15 to 3:15 p.m. at the Steeple Building. The reception is free and open to the public.

Light refreshments will be served.

Before becoming the 38th governor, Edgar served as secretary of state for 10 years and was elected to the Illinois House from Charleston in 1976. He received a B.S. in history from Eastern Illinois University in 1968.

First elected governor in 1990, he won re-election in 1994 by the largest margin ever for a governor. He left office in 1999 with the highest approval rating of any governor in state history.

Edgar is a Distinguished Fellow at the University of Illinois’ Institute of Government and Public Affairs where he interacts with students and lectures at other universities and colleges throughout the state.

He has also served as a resident fellow at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, serves on a variety of corporate and civic boards, and is the President Emeritus of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library Foundation.

Governor Edgar will also be speaking in Wallenberg Hall at Augustana College in Rock Island Monday evening. His topic is “Leadership in Times of Crisis.” The lecture will be free and open to the public.